(A) Description.
(1) The comprehensive plan is intended as an instrument of public policy, reflecting the goals and objectives for the development of the county in the future. The comprehensive plan can be carried out by the administration and installation of public facility improvements by local government, the cooperative efforts of the developers of the land, and active support of the general public.
(2) In the future, as planning problems arise requiring evaluations by the Area Plan Commission, the comprehensive plan and its policies will be used as criteria for the basis of decisions.
(3) The comprehensive plan for the county is a composite of four separate elements as follows.
(a) Land use plan. This is a plan for the future use of land and the structures built on the land. The land use districts are shown as residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural.
(b) Transportation plan. This plan is based on existing transportation facilities and a determination of future transportation needs. A street and highway plan is presented, based on existing and future traffic considerations.
(c) Capital improvements plan. The primary purpose of this plan is to identify current and future county infrastructure needs, and to plan the implementation of solutions to overcome those needs.
(d) Implementation plan. The goal of this plan is to provide government, the public and its representatives with a clear cut, step-by-step process to achieve the goals and objectives laid out in the plan.
(B) General. The comprehensive plan is a graphic illustration of the general development patterns of the county as it is expected to appear in 2020 if the planning objectives are met. The basic concept of the comprehensive plan is that land uses, identified as residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural, will be directed to areas designed to accommodate this development. A review of the area required to meet both the population needs, and the community goals and objectives, resulted in the determination of each type of land use.
(C) Background.
(1) Master plan.
(a) In 1961 a master plan for the City of Vincennes was developed. A jurisdictional area of two miles beyond the corporate limits was included as part of that plan. A decade later, in November 1971, a master plan was adopted for the county. All of the area within the county was included, except the incorporated area of Vincennes. In effect, the 1971 county plan updated the planning proposals for the area immediately surrounding the city.
(b) The Area Plan Commission of the county was formed in January of 1972. One of the first official acts of this new committee was to adopt the Master Plans for the county and the City of Vincennes. No further updates to these plans have occurred since they were updated and approved in 1972.
(2) Communities. The county is located on the southwestern border of Indiana. The county is one of the larger counties in Indiana in terms of area, but is in the bottom half in terms of population. The communities that make up the county and that are included in this comprehensive plan are: Vincennes, Bicknell, Oaktown, Sandborn, Wheatland, Monroe City, Decker, Ragsdale, Bruceville, Edwardsport, Freelandville, Westphalia, and Emison. Of these, Vincennes and Bicknell are incorporated cities. Sandborn, Oaktown, Wheatland, Monroe City, Decker, Bruceville, and Edwardsport are incorporated towns and the remaining are unincorporated communities.
(D) Authorization/financing.
(1) This comprehensive plan was funded by a Lilly Endowment Gift. The County Area Plan Commission and the County Commissioners authorized this project in June of 2000. Hannum, Wagle and Cline Engineering was the consulting firm on the project study and also wrote the first versions of this comprehensive plan along with the accompanying Zoning and Subdivision Control Ordinances.
(2) Considerable public input was received during initial public hearings in August and September of 2001. As a result, the Area Plan Commission thoroughly reviewed the plan and ordinances, and made significant changes to each without the involvement of the consulting firm.
(E) Report organization.
(1) This comprehensive plan report is a general overview of the county. A narrative executive summary is included for those citizens who want a brief statement of the entire plan. The report, as stated previously, is broken into four main plans. They are the land use, capital improvements, transportation and implementation plans.
(2) (a) When adopted, this plan will become an official guide to local officials for long range development goals.
(b) This report contains a summary of observations and general recommendations regarding future growth.
(c) The effectiveness of this comprehensive plan will ultimately rely on how its recommendations are implemented and enforced through zoning ordinances and subdivision control ordinances.
(Res. 2004-8, passed - -2004; Res. 5-2008, passed 12-15-2008)